Homework #18: Health & Illness & Feasting

While our society is generally fixed around nurturing the mind, Thanksgiving has become about pleasuring the body – giving it satisfaction through food. It seems odd that we would choose such a route to honor the Pilgrims who migrated to the United States and wiped out the indigenous people. But maybe because we focus so much on our bodily pleasures through feasting, for one day we are able to ignore our minds and the cruelty that actually lies in the event that we celebrate. Many people look at Thanksgiving as a day when our stomachs have no limit, we instead eat as much as we possibly can, knowing that we will probably not consume turkey in this form for another year.

My family takes part in the Thanksgiving tradition, especially the consummation of tons of unhealthy foods. Thanksgiving is celebrated on my dad’s side of the family: he has five brothers and sisters, four of which have two kids, his one sister with only a daughter; all together we have 26 people. This side of the family is generally healthy; regardless of the fact that they grew up on a lot of processed foods having a large family, and especially considering the fact that my grandmother is a terrible cook. But through growing up with such an interesting diet, they seem to have survived with quite fit, durable bodies. The consummation of our Thanksgiving foods does not seem to bother them. We of course have the turkey and mashed potatoes, also accompanied by one or two salads (which never seem to be finished by the end of the day) and sweet mashed potatoes with cooked marshmallows on top. The meal is far from healthy, and the healthiest part – the salads – seem to be eaten the least. I am not sure how the rest of them eat outside of holidays, but I can say that they focus on pleasure. Health in the foods is lacking, but that has never seemed the point of Thanksgiving.

Besides taking pleasure in food, the men of course found pleasure in watching football, all passed out on the couches rooting for teams they did not even care about normally. This eventually turned into a ping-pong tournament downstairs between a couple of the uncles and boy cousins. Thanksgiving used to take place at my grandparents’ house; they too have a ping-pong table. I guess I could say that it is indeed a tradition to play ping-pong on Thanksgiving, while I doubt it would be mentioned if anyone in the family were to be asked about the traditions of Thanksgiving. The people in my family take pleasure in competition, and this is a perfect outlet for them when we all come together. People, or at least my family, come together to take pleasure in a meal created by all of them, but also to see those whom they love.

This Thanksgiving we also celebrated my grandparents’ 60^th wedding anniversary. It was initially during the summer, but it was impossible to get everyone together to celebrate it. This was actually the first time we have had the entire family together in probably three years. Nobody was sure how to celebrate their marriage; each aunt and uncle ended up saying ten things for which they thanked my grandparents. Each shared small anecdotes, reminiscing on their times as children. My grandmother and grandfather sat there on the verge of tears, simultaneously roaring with laughter. They were thanked for their humor, their support, for their appreciation of other people’s good cooking. My grandfather stood up at the end and thanked everyone; he said he hoped they both could hold on a little longer. As he sat down I wondered to myself if he was scared of dying. Or if, because he could make a joke of it, he accepted it. Both my grandparents have had their share of battles in the health department, it seemed that they always healed, always held on for us. It was weird to think that one day they would be defeated.

Saying goodbye to 26 people at once is a hard thing, each person receives a hug and always has something extra to say, whether it be about college or the shoes I am wearing. I went to hug my cousin Mickey goodbye and he said, “I’ll see you at Christmas, unless someone dies before then.” I gave him a weird look and told him to not say that, it was terrible. He assured me that it was just a joke, that nobody would die. In the car home my parents were discussing the Christmas party that we throw every year for this side of the family. It was hard to find a date because so many people had other commitments. It came down to deciding whom we would rather not have there, because it would be impossible for everyone to come. I take thanks in the fact that we can still decide who is not going to come, not that someone cannot come because they are no longer there, that no matter the date, their chair will still be empty.